Voice of the Free Press: South Burlington in eye of F-35 debate

Jul. 12, 2013

Walden Rooney (right), a supporter of basing F-35 jets at the Air National Guard base at the airport, listens to F-35 opponent Linus Leavens during the public comment portion of a meeting of the South Burlington City Council on Monday. / GLENN RUSSELL/FREE PRESS

Written by

Free Press Editorial Page Editor

The debate in South Burlington over basing F-35 fighter jets with the Vermont Air National Guard has risen to a level of intensity rarely seen in the suburban community.

Being the focus of a statewide political debate is unusual for a community better known for goods schools and as home to the state’s largest enclosed shopping mall.

Anyone involved in South Burlington’s civic life knows residents have great passion for issue that affect the city. But the F-35 debate seems to rise to another level.

On Monday, more than 70 people spoke up about the F-35 at a City Council meeting, before councilors voted 3-2 to support the plane’s basing.

On Tuesday night, more than 150 people attended a meeting organized by opponents who contend the noise from the jets pose a serious health hazard.

Monday’s council action reverses an earlier vote against basing the jets, and follows Town Meeting Day election that brought in two councilors who campaigned partly as supporters of the F-35.

Both proponents and opponents of the F-35 have amped up the debate by pulling emotional triggers to sway people to their side.

Those against the F-35 emphasize the negative impact the noise from the jets will have on the health and welfare of residents — especially children — as well as the value of home in affected neighborhood.

Supporters focus on the jobs that come with ensuring a strong Air Guard presence at the airport as well as play upon a sense of patriotism and local pride in seeing the latest jets based in Vermont.

This is an issue that has drawn in people from across the state including civic and business leaders as well as Vermont’s top elected officials. The debate has garnered national attention.

The Vermont Air National Guard based at the Burlington International Airport is the top Guard candidate to receive the F-35s. The news jets would replace the aging F-16s currently deployed in Vermont.

Opponents have raised questions about the integrity of the scoring process that put South Burlington as the “preferred site” for the new jets.

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Nationally, the F-35 program has been criticized for being over budget by billions of dollars, and questioned over the plane’s capabilities and usefulness for a post-Cold War military.

The state’s congressional delegation — Sen. Patrick Leahy, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Peter Welch — as well as Gov. Peter Shumlin and Burlington Mayor Miro Weinburger, have lined up behind the F-35 as the only option available to secure the future of the Vermont guard. Their rationale goes, this is the Air Force’s next-generation plane and Vermont ought to grab the opportunity to equip the Air Guard with the best.

For the state, the National Guard is a critical economic engine and fierce point of pride. Many Vermonters have served in the Guard and almost everyone has a relative, co-worker or neighbor who has served or is serving.

For South Burlington, the issue is intensely local because the F-35s would be based at the Burlington International Airport located in the city.

The final decision about where the F-35s will be based will be made by the Air Force. There’s no telling how much influence local support or opposition will have on the outcome.

The intensity of the debate in South Burlington shows that Vermonters are doing their best to make themselves heard.